Inventory for the 

Nellie Tayloe Ross Papers

Guide to

Nellie Tayloe Ross

Papers, ca. 1880s-1994

3.9 cubic feet

Accession Number 948-97-10-07

Prepared by Monte G. Kniffen

January 1998

 Contents

Introduction

History

Series Description

Scope and Content

Subjects

Folder List

Series I. Correspondence, 1902-1994
Series II. Political, 1925-1969
Series III. Legal and Financial, 1909-1978
Series IV. Clippings, 1907-1982
Series V. Genealogy/Family History, 1912-1992
Series VI. Personal/Miscellaneous, 1927-1994
Series VII. Photographs, ca. 1880s-1977
Series VIII. Audio/Visual, ca. 1933, 1994

Introduction

Nellie Tayloe Ross, 1876-1977
Papers, ca. 1880s-1994
3.9 cubic feet (10 boxes)
Accession number 948-97-10-07

The Nellie Tayloe Ross papers came to the American Heritage Center as a loan from the Ross family. This material was copied or duplicated and the originals were sent back to the family. This inventory is of the copied material.

The collection should be cited as: Nellie Tayloe Ross Papers, ca. 1880's-1994, Accession Number 948-97-10-07, Box Number, Folder Number, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

 RECEIVED AND ACKNOWLEDGED

Rick Ewig
Assistant Director/Operations

History

Nellie Davis Tayloe was born in St. Joseph, Missouri in 1876. Nellie was educated in private schools and taught kindergarten briefly in Omaha. While visiting family in Tennessee, she became acquainted with a young lawyer named William Bradford Ross, and a year and a half later, in 1902, they married.

The young couple moved to Cheyenne, Wyoming, after their marriage as it was William's desire to start a law practice in the West. William's general law practice in Cheyenne was very successful and he soon became one of the leaders of the Democratic Party in Wyoming.

During the first twenty years of their marriage, Nellie's energy was devoted to her family and home. She had twin boys in the first year of their marriage, George Tayloe and James Ambrose. This was followed by the birth of Alfred Duff in 1905, who died in infancy, and William Bradford in 1912.

William became Governor of Wyoming in 1922 and served the first two years of his term before becoming ill and dying unexpectedly in 1924. Shortly thereafter, the Democratic Party nominated Nellie to run as the Democratic candidate for Governor in a special election to fill her husband's vacancy. She easily defeated her opponent, becoming the first woman governor of the United States. Her administration was not characterized as either a great success or failure and she failed to win reelection by a very narrow margin.

After her defeat Nellie turned her attention to national politics. She used her fame to campaign for Al Smith and became vice chairman of the Democratic Party. Noticing her devotion to the Democratic Party and her political ability, President Franklin Roosevelt appointed Nellie Director of the U.S. Mint, the first woman to hold that position. She served four five-year terms before retiring from politics in 1953.

The remainder of her life was spent traveling, lecturing, writing, and spending time with family. Nellie died in 1977 at the age of 101. 

 Series Description

The Nellie Tayloe Ross (NTR) Papers are arranged in seven series:

Series I. Correspondence, 1902-1994. 1.8 cubic feet (4 document boxes). Arranged roughly in chronological order. Includes mostly personal correspondence from NTR, but also includes some correspondence of her husband and her family.

Series II. Political, 1925-1969. .45 cubic feet (1 document box). Arranged in chronological order. Consists mostly of speeches given by NTR, but also includes interviews and articles about NTR.

Series III. Legal and Financial, 1909-1978. .45 cubic feet (1 document box). Arranged roughly in chronological order. Includes legal papers concerning NTR's estate and other miscellaneous legal items.

Series IV. Clippings, 1907-1982. .45 cubic feet (1 document box). Arranged chronologically. Includes clippings from newspapers and other print media. Also includes miscellaneous items found in NTR's scrapbooks.

Series V. Genealogy/Family History, 1912-1992. .25 cubic feet (1 slim document box). Arranged chronologically. Includes information about the Ross and Tayloe families.

Series VI. Personal/Miscellaneous, 1927-1994. .13 cubic feet (1/2 slim document box). Consists mostly of biographical information about NTR including articles written about her, interviews with her descendants and funeral information.

Series VII. Photographs, ca. 1880s-1977. .12 cubic feet (1/2 slim document box). Consists of copies of photographs relating to NTR's family and career. Negatives were made from the original prints and prints can be made from these negatives.

Series VIII. Audio/Visual Material, ca. 1933, 1994. .25 cubic feet (1 slim document box). 1 audio tape and 1 video cassette.

Scope and Content

The Nellie Tayloe Ross Papers consist of photocopies of originals lent to the American Heritage Center by the Ross family. The collection contains correspondence, legal and financial papers, genealogical information, political information, and clippings.

The correspondence files are the largest series of the collection. It covers the majority of Nellie Tayloe Ross' life, including the entire span of Nellie Tayloe Ross' political career and her life after retirement. The collection also contains numerous copies of speeches given by Nellie Tayloe Ross.

Subjects

Politics, Practical -- Wyoming
United States Mint -- Officials and employees
Wyoming -- History -- 1919-1945
Wyoming -- History -- 1946-
Wyoming -- Politics and government
Diaries
Scrapbooks
Artifacts
Phonograph records
Politicians

Folder List

Series I. Correspondence, 1902-1994

Box 1

Box 2

Box 3

Box 4

Series II. Political, 1925-1969

Box 5

Series III. Legal and Financial, 1909-1978

Box 6

Series IV. Clippings, 1907-1982

Box 7

Series V. Genealogy/Family History, 1912-1992

Box 8

Series VI. Personal/Miscellaneous, 1927-1994

Box 9

Series VII. Photographs, ca. 1880s-1977

Series VIII. Audio/Visual, ca. 1933, 1994

All audio/visual material is located in the audio/visual archive.

Box 10